Briggs wants new deal, believes he's part of Bears' LB legacy

LAKE FOREST, Ill. -- Lance Briggs made it clear Thursday that he still wants a new deal from the Chicago Bears. Only this time, he did it with a smile.

The Pro Bowl linebacker had some fun when asked Thursday about his request to renegotiate his contract at the start of the season, turning a microphone toward a reporter and grinning as he looked into the TV cameras.

"Could you repeat that question?" Briggs asked. "I didn't catch the question. I believe (it was) that, 'You said that earlier in the year you mentioned contract issues and you decided to put that under the rug and forget about that. It seemed to enhance my play this year. Do I hope the Bears get the message going into the offseason?'

"I'm going to leave that as no comment."

Briggs' response said plenty. He continues to make loud statements on the field, too.

He's in select company after becoming just the fourth linebacker in franchise history to make seven consecutive Pro Bowls this week, joining Hall of Famers Dick Butkus, Bill George and Mike Singletary. Briggs leads the Bears with 140 tackles and is tied for the team lead with eight tackles for losses to go with one interception and two forced fumbles heading into Sunday's season finale at Minnesota.

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"Who knows how long I'll play or anybody else on the team is going to play, but the one thing that will always be here are those guys who were all-stars and played well," Briggs said. "The linebacker legacy in Chicago, I think I'll be a part of it."

There's a good chance Briggs or his agent will mention all that to the Bears (7-8) at some point.

Whether management will listen is another issue. With three years left on a six-year, $36 million contract, Bears general manager Jerry Angelo basically told Briggs to leave him alone when the linebacker asked for permission to seek a trade if he couldn't receive a renegotiated deal before the season.